Celebrating birthday as per Hindu Dharma

Nowadays birthdays are celebrated as per the English calendar. Celebrating birthdays as per the tithi (lunar day according to Hindu almanac) is more auspicious and spiritually beneficial. Let us find out the spiritual significance of celebrating birthday as per the tithi.

1. Spiritual meaning of birthday

A. Birthday is for expressing gratitude unto God

Celebration of a birthday is for expressing gratitude unto God for providing the opportunity to perform spiritual practice in the year gone by and praying to Him to continue granting similar grace in the coming year. – A Scholar (Through the medium of Mrs Anjali Gadgil, 21.1.2005)

B. Birthday is the day to assess
the spiritual progress of an individual

Birthday is the day of evaluating whether the sanskars that the individual has been exposed to, has been imbibed in its subtle-bodies. From a spiritual perspective, it is the day of assessment of one’s own individual spiritual progress. The day spiritual progress takes place signifies the true birthday. – God (Through the medium of Ms Madhura Bhosale, 13.5.2005)

C. Birthday is the day to enhance the
ability to imbibe Chaitanya (Divine consciousness)

Birthday is the day to enhance the ability of an individual to imbibe Chaitanya through the benevolent waves obtained through the blessings of Deities upon invoking them. The individual harmonizes with the external atmosphere that has become sattvik due to Chaitanya-based process, and thereby attains internal stability. – A Scholar (Through the medium of Mrs Anjali Gadgil)

2. History and importance of birthday celebrations

A. Birthday of a person in Satyayug

In Satyayug, Tretayug and Dwaparyug (Third in the cycle of the four eras), spiritually evolved individuals were either invited to bless the person on his first birthday, or the child would be taken to such individuals for their blessings. The evolved individual would perform aukshan (Ritual of waving a lit lamp in front of the individual) of the child and, making an unexpressed resolve, would shower akshata (Unbroken rice grains smeared with saffron and used in ritualistic worship) on various parts of the child’s body, thus activating the chakras in those areas.

B. Birthday of a person in Tretayug and Dwaparyug

Saints would assess the spiritual progress of a person during the year and then bless

In Tretayug and Dwaparyug, several spiritually evolved individuals would visit a person and would bless it for rapid spiritual progress or the person would visit Saints to seek their blessings. After receiving blessings from the spiritually evolved, the individual would make sincere efforts towards spiritual progress. On the subsequent birthday, when the individual would go to seek the blessings of a Saint, He would evaluate the spiritual progress made by the person during the year and only then bless him.

– God (Through the medium of Ms Madhura Bhosale)

3. Importance of celebrating
the birthday as per the tithi

A. Blessings and good wishes bestow maximum benefit

Our vibrations match the tithi of our birth most. As a result, the blessings and good wishes of relatives and well-wishers are most effective on that tithi. Hence, the birthday should be celebrated as per the tithi.

B. Developing the prowess to combat obstacles in life

The waves present in the Universe on the birthday as per the tithi are conducive to the temperament and the attitude of the person. As a result, the sattvik and Chaitanya-enriched rituals performed on that day leave a deep impression on the subconscious mind of the person. As a result, the person develops spiritual prowess and the ability to combat obstacles in its future life.

– A Scholar (Through the medium of Mrs Anjali Gadgil, 21.1.2005 and 28.8.2005)

C. Benefits of celebrating the birthday as per the tithi,
as against the date of birth according to the English calendar

– God (Through the medium of Ms Madhura Bhosale, 13.5.2005)

C 1. Ill-effects of celebrating birthday as per date

A. Celebrating birthday according to date means celebrating it according to English calendar. The English months are created by man. This count began from the birth of Christ. Since there is no Divine planning in it, individual does not get any spiritual benefit by celebrating birthday according to date. Besides, the English months being created by man, they contain active vibrations of ego too.

B. Due to the inappropriate acts performed by the people who celebrate the birthday according to date, Tama-predominant vibrations are attracted towards the individual whose birthday is being celebrated, a black covering develops around its body and it becomes extroverted : It is because of the acts such as wishing on the previous day at midnight, cutting a cake on birthday, blowing out candles etc., that Tama-predominant vibrations are attracted towards the individual whose birthday is being celebrated and a black covering develops around its body. All such actions lead to an extroverted attitude.’

C 2. Benefits of celebrating birthday as per the tithi

The subtle benefits of celebrating birthday as per the tithi and performing aukshan are as follows:

A. The vibrations at the time of the birth of a person are favorable to it.

B. Janma-tithi (lunar day of birth) makes available the favorable principles that were present at the time of its birth and the person benefits from them when aukshan is performed

On Janma-tithi, the position of stars and constellations is same as that during person’s birth. Therefore, the yearly Janma-tithi of a person helps obtain favorable Principles that were present at the time of its birth, which the person obtains after performing aukshan on that day.

C. By utilisation of tithis the person obtains Chaitanya

The creation of tithis (Months and constellations) and their planning is done by Sages, ancient astrologers and mathematicians according to a certain plan of God. Therefore, a person receives more Chaitanya through them. On the contrary, English dates and months are created by man and their use does not give any spiritual benefit to the person.

D. Aukshan performed on a janma-tithi makes a person introverted and he begins to think about what all he or she achieved in the year gone by and what next he or she has to achieve in the coming days.

E. A person receives Sattva-predominant Principle from God on his janma-tithi which removes the black covering around it and one constantly receives those Principles throughout the day.

– Ms Priyanka Lotlikar, Sanatan Sanstha (24.7.2010)

D. Should we celebrate if the
date of birth as per tithi is an inauspicious day ?

According to astrology, even if the date of birth as per the tithi is ‘Ghat tithi (Inauspicious day)’, yet since the benefits of the tithi are greater, it is appropriate to celebrate the birthday on that day.

Compiler

We advise that the birthday be celebrated as per the tithi. However, astrology says that ‘no auspicious karma (an act) should be performed on the tithi of birth, for it is an inauspicious tithi.’ Then, what exactly should be done on that day ?

A Scholar

The implied meaning of the word ‘inauspicious’ in this context is different. Vibrations of the individual born on a specific tithi closely match the vibrations of the tithi. Mantriks (Subtle sorcerers) who indulge in black magic can, with their ability, make a replica of the person and cause distress to the extent of 70%. Hence, this tithi is referred to as ‘inauspicious’, meaning the tithi is capable of giving maximum distress.

This is an excellent example of the misconceptions of people in Kaliyug . On this day, the probability of facing obstacles in any auspicious task is high. This was interpreted as ‘no auspicious task related to the person should be performed on this day’ and, as a result, the misconception set in. On the contrary, performing auspicious karma, meaning celebrating birthday on this tithi through the ritual of aukshan (Ritual of waving a lit lamp in front of a Saint or an individual) accompanied by a prayer made unto Kuladevata (Family Deity), provides rewards in the form of Chaitanya (Divine consciousness) that helps the person combat the negative energy attacks at respective levels. Hence, there is no statement to the effect that ‘no auspicious karma should be performed on this day’. This is an unfounded statement.

(Through the medium of Mrs Anjali Gadgil, 4.3.2006)

4. Spiritual experiences
during the birthday celebrations

Below is one incidence of an individual who had positive spiritual experiences while performing the birthday rituals as prescribed by Hindu Dharma on the Janma-tithi (A lunar day of birth).

While celebrating birthday as per the tithi and according to the spiritual science, physical and mental bodies get purified due to the flow of rays through the Adnya (Sixth centre or chakra in the spiritual energy system; located in the mid-brow region in the subtle-body) and Sahasrar chakras (Notional opening situated at the crown of the head, which leads to realisation of Brahman and Shiv) into the body, forming a protective sheath around the body, due to the movement of golden particles and white rays that have entered the body, the gross as well as the subtle bodies get energy throughout the year despite attacks of negative energies: In 2003, my birthday was celebrated as per the tithi and according to the spiritual science. Throughout the day, I felt extremely pleasant. Yellow rays were continuously entering my body through the Adnya-chakra. My concentration was increasing. During the Arati (A ritual of waving a lit lamp in front of a Deity or Saints, accompanied by singing of hymns) and chanting, my body felt lighter than usual. I could see white rays entering my body through the Sahasrar-chakra. Due to this, I perceived that my entire physical and mental body was getting purified. A flow of yellow and white rays into my body throughout the day created a protective sheath around me; this comprised of seventy percent yellow and thirty percent white rays. Twenty percent golden particles and five percent white rays of light had entered my body. I could perceive the movement of these particles and rays of light in my body throughout the year. As a result, my gross and subtle bodies were receiving energy. I could therefore undertake satseva .

– Ms Madhura Bhosale, Sanatan Ashram, Ramnathi, Goa.

Reference : Sanatan’s Holy Text ‘Spiritual science underlying familial religious and social acts ‘